Off-duty police officer arrested for moving to a better seat at Mets game

An off-duty police officer was arrested at Citi Field on Thursday night when stadium officials discovered that he was sitting in the wrong seat. If you have never been in the position 30-year-old Eduardo Cornejo was in as he was watching the Mets lose 6-3 to the Reds, you’ve either never been to many sporting events or are a strict law-abiding citizen.

According to the NY Post, Cornejo — whom they described as “drunk” — moved to a more expensive seat and was asked to move back to his own seat several times. When he refused, he was asked a number of times to leave the stadium. Cornejo reportedly would not comply, so a uniformed police officer relieved stadium security of their duties and arrested him.

“He was in a section he wasn’t supposed to be,” Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said according to the NY Daily News. “They asked him to leave. He wouldn’t. (A) supervisor asked him to leave. He wouldn’t. The uniformed police sergeant asked him to leave. He wouldn’t, and he was arrested as a result.”

Cornejo was arraigned on criminal trespassing charges Thursday and released before declining to comment on the situation. While there are certain to be a number of people who are outraged that a police officer was arrested over something like this, that should have no bearing on the situation. If you want to argue that the Mets should allow fans to move to more expensive seats toward the end of the game, that’s one thing. I’ve done it many times at sporting events, but I’ve also moved back if a security guard asked me too. Whether he agreed that he should be allowed to sit there or not, Cornejo was required to comply the same way any other fan would be.

H/T Big League Stew
Photo credit: Jason O. Watson-US PRESSWIRE